In this episode of the What It Takes Podcast, host Tuli Kraus sits down with Aaron Zutler, sales veteran, entrepreneur, and co-founder of Pop Insanity, to talk about learning to sell from the ground up, cracking the big box retail code, and how a popcorn machine that couldn’t be returned ended up becoming a nationwide brand.

Aaron Zutler spent years in the trenches selling small electronics, keyboards, webcams, and peripherals, into some of the toughest buyers in retail: Best Buy, Walmart, and Target-level accounts who eat vendors for breakfast. He learned how to negotiate, how to read a room, and how to get a “yes” from people whose entire job is to say “no.”

Then, almost by accident, he got introduced to a keyboard player making insane popcorn in his kitchen. That introduction, and one non-refundable popcorn machine, led to Pop Insanity, a gourmet kosher popcorn brand that landed on Oprah’s Favorite Things list, got featured on Good Morning America, and eventually earned a starring role on Marcus Lemonis’ show The Fixer.

In this conversation, Aaron breaks down what it actually took, sleeping on a blow-up mattress in Muncie, borrowing money while making two weddings, building a brand with no marketing budget, and staying calm when the website crashed in the middle of Q4 holiday season.

He also gets real about partnerships, hiring, what separates employees who rise from those who stay stuck, and why customer service matters just as much as the product.

If you’re an employee trying to level up, a founder figuring out how to build something from scratch, or someone quietly wondering if your skills could one day work for you, this episode is exactly what you need.

💡 In This Episode, We Cover:

◼️ How Aaron stumbled into sales and why he says it’s the most valuable skill you can have ◼️ The insider breakdown of selling into big box retail (open to buy, end caps, markdown money and more) ◼️ The non-refundable popcorn machine that accidentally started a business ◼️ What the early days of Pop Insanity actually looked like, blow-up mattresses and all ◼️ How Oprah’s team found them at a gift show in Atlanta and what happened next ◼️ Getting on Good Morning America and landing Marcus Lemonis’ The Fixer ◼️ How COVID shifted their entire business model in their favor ◼️ The three things Aaron says you absolutely need in a business partner ◼️ What separates employees who grow fast from those who stay stuck ◼️ Why honesty, initiative, and mavatar (flexibility) matter more than any resume

⏱️ Chapters:

0:00 From Office Work to Closeouts: How Aaron Accidentally Got Into Sales7:45 The Art of Selling: Aggression, Etiquette & What Actually Works21:26 The Popcorn Machine That Started It All: The Origin Story of Pop Insanity29:10 Sleeping in Muncie: Building Pop Insanity From Zero39:41 Oprah’s Favorite Things: Getting Discovered at a Gift Show in Atlanta47:24 The Fixer & The Website Crash Heard Round the Warehouse52:17 COVID, Hiring & What It Actually Takes to Grow Inside a Company

🔗 Connect with Aaron ZutlerLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaron-zutler

🔗 Connect with the Host - Tuli KrausInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackbird.recruiting/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tuli-kraus/

United Refuah

United Refuah offers an affordable alternative to traditional health insurance through a health share program, with a monthly cost of just $500. For the first 10 listeners, use code Blackbird to get the third month free.

https://unitedrefuahhs.org/

Blackbird Recruiting

Hiring the wrong person is expensive — not just financially, but culturally.

Blackbird Recruiting helps growing companies hire people who actually perform, so you can spend less time filtering résumés and more time building your business.

If you’re serious about scaling with the right team, visit blackbirdrecruiting.com to learn more.

In this episode of the What It Takes Podcast, host Tuli Kraus sits down with Dr. Jonathan Donath — chiropractor, entrepreneur, and founder of Daily Giving — to talk about building a successful practice from scratch, starting a nonprofit with zero experience, and why giving tzedakah every single day might be the greatest business decision you ever make.

Dr. Jonathan Donath runs a thriving chiropractic practice in White Plains, New York, where he specializes in severe neck and back conditions, helping patients avoid surgery through hands-on, drug-free treatment. But outside the office, he's the president and CEO of Daily Giving — a non-profit that has distributed over $29 million to more than 100 Jewish organizations worldwide, funded entirely by people giving just $1 a day.

What started as an epiphany in a shul parking lot after watching a YouTube video about a near-death experience turned into a global platform with 24,000 givers across 51 countries — distributing over $24,000 every single day to orphans, widows, cancer patients, poverty relief, kiruv, Torah, and more.

In this conversation, Dr. Donath opens up about what it's really like to run two full-time operations simultaneously, the business mistakes he made early on, why he almost gave up in the first few months of Daily Giving, and the mindset shift around maaser that he wishes someone had told him at 21.

If you're interested in entrepreneurship, nonprofit building, chiropractic as a career, the power of giving, or simply building something that actually matters — this episode will leave you inspired, challenged, and probably ready to sign up for something.

💡 In This Episode, We Cover:

◼️ How Dr. Donath chose chiropractic over traditional medicine—and built a practice from zero

◼️ The real salary numbers behind owning vs. working in chiropractic

◼️ Why going out-of-network was the best decision he ever made

◼️ The near-death experience video that sparked the idea for Daily Giving

◼️ How he grew from 100 signups to 24,000 givers across 51 countries

◼️ The operational reality of running an $8.8M/year nonprofit with a small team

◼️ Why every dollar donated goes directly to tzedakah—with overhead funded separately

◼️ The maaser habit he wishes he’d started at age 21

◼️ How he hires, the personality tests he uses, and why warmth can’t be trained

◼️ The mindset of “failure is not an option”—and what it actually costs you to believe it

⏱️ Chapters:

0:00 From Minneapolis to White Plains — The Road to Chiropractic10:13 Building the Business — Overhead, Patients & the Golden Handcuff Trap26:51 The Near-Death Experience Video That Changed Everything36:29 What Daily Giving Actually Is — How $1/Day Moves Millions49:42 From 100 Signups to 24,000 Givers Across 51 Countries1:04:27 Hiring, Personality Tests & Building Teams That Work1:08:07 Maaser, Mindset & the Cheat Code to a Better Life

🔗 Connect with Dr. Jonathan DonathInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/drdonath/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drjonathandonath/

🔗 Connect with the Host - Tuli KrausInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackbird.recruiting/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tuli-kraus/

United Refuah

United Refuah offers an affordable alternative to traditional health insurance through a health share program, with a monthly cost of just $500. For the first 10 listeners, use code Blackbird to get the third month free.

https://unitedrefuahhs.org/

Blackbird Recruiting

Hiring the wrong person is expensive — not just financially, but culturally.

Blackbird Recruiting helps growing companies hire people who actually perform, so you can spend less time filtering résumés and more time building your business.

If you’re serious about scaling with the right team, visit blackbirdrecruiting.com to learn more.

In this episode of the What It Takes Podcast, we sit down with Rabbi Benjamin Heinemann — CEO of BP Print Group, founder of the BP Weekly, and one of the most quietly inspiring business leaders you've never heard of. With over 100 employees, clients across the US, Canada, Israel, and Australia, and 37 years of building from the ground up, Rabbi Heinemann has one simple answer for how it all happened: Hashem.

What started as a young kollel guy hanging a sign in a coffee room turned into a full-scale printing empire. We talk about the real story behind building a business with emunah at the center — the tough hires, the COVID payroll decisions nobody said thank you for, the backwards journal that changed his davening forever, and the Mincha minyan that literally made his neighbor's best month in business.

This episode isn't just about printing. It's about what it really takes to build something lasting — with integrity, gratitude, and your eyes wide open to everything Hashem is doing around you.

If you're an entrepreneur, a business owner, or someone who wants to bring more meaning into how they work and lead — this conversation will stay with you.

💡 In This Episode, We Cover:

◼️ How a kollel guy with a computer became a 100+ employee CEO ◼️ The print shop takeover that happened in under a year ◼️ Starting a Mincha minyan at work — and watching business take off ◼️ The “backwards journal” story that rewired his entire approach to davening ◼️ Why the money you have is literally your personal mun ◼️ The maaser system he’s used since day one — and why it always works ◼️ What actually makes a great employee (hint: it’s not their salary ask) ◼️ The COVID raise he gave that nobody said thank you for ◼️ Why most job ads are a complete waste of money ◼️ How BP Weekly grew from 1,200 families to 18,000+ ◼️ Stop selling price — sell your differentiator ◼️ Is printing dying? His bold, honest take on the future ◼️ AI, Kodak, and why you have to think futuristic or get left behind

Chapters:

0:00 Intro & Guest Welcome

2:05 How It All Started

4:49 Taking Over Joe’s Print Shop

8:38 Opening His Own Shop

10:45 Bringing Hashem Into the Business

18:02 The Backwards Journal Story

32:27 Maiser, Money & The Mun

39:35 What Makes a Great Employee

44:11 The COVID Raise & Recruiting

53:27 The BP Weekly Origin Story

1:00:35 Sell Your Differentiator, Not Your Price

1:12:03 Closing Story & Final Thoughts

🔗 Connect with Rabbi Benjamin HeinemannLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-heinemann-a02a6a18Instagram (BP Print Group): https://www.instagram.com/bpprintgroup/

🔗 Connect with the Host - Tuli KrausInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackbird.recruiting/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tuli-kraus/

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United Refuah

United Refuah offers an affordable alternative to traditional health insurance through a health share program, with a monthly cost of just $500. For the first 10 listeners, use code Blackbird to get the third month free.

https://unitedrefuahhs.org/

Blackbird Recruiting

Hiring the wrong person is expensive — not just financially, but culturally.

Blackbird Recruiting helps growing companies hire people who actually perform, so you can spend less time filtering résumés and more time building your business.

If you’re serious about scaling with the right team, visit blackbirdrecruiting.com to learn more.